About Me

Hi everyone! My name is Noelle and I
am a Special Education teacher (self-contained, grades 3, 4, and 5!) After graduating, I started teaching Kindergarten!!! I had only applied to sub when I was called in for an interview! The following school year I moved schools and changed grade levels. I absolutely love where I am now and what
I am doing!

Sunshine Blogger Award

Saturday, September 20, 2014

On Tuesday, my school held its Open House. Many grades/classrooms have about 50% of the parents show up. This year I have ten students and just two parents came. It upsets/saddens me that parents do not come to see what is going on in their child's class, especially a self-contained class. Each year I always prepare as if every parent will show up and I always have nice displays for them. At least two parents got to see them!

I generally set up some sort of station like this, a "Helping Hands" station with different items we could use in the classroom.

My mom actually gave me this when I first started teaching and I still use it!! This is a front/back sheet of different ways to help your child at home!

My sign in sheet!

I can't remember where I found this poem, I wish I could because I love it! I have used it since!

During open house, one parent asked me about different apps that they're child could use at home. I did a little research and made a list of math and literacy apps!!! I shared this with my co-workers the following day and many took advantage of it! I have it as a freebie here today or by clicking on the picture!!!

This year I offered to help with the school store. My offer turned into taking it over. I am actually very excited about this. I'm going to use it as a life skills class for my students. They will be the ones running the store. They will be selling the items, conversing with peers, making change, and working together, all while being overseen by myself and my assistant. I think that this is perfect!!! When I told my students, they were also as excited as I was! This week we made a schedule for when different grades would be able to come and shop!

Right now in science, I am teaching about the solar system. The kids are loving it so far! #welovescience! We have been talking about planets for a few weeks. I found this adorable planet book on TPT that you can get HERE for free! It was perfect to close the lessons on planets!

We began learning about the phases of the moon this week as well. I had seen some cute piterest moon phase activities, but my favorite one was using Oreos to show the different phases! I also found a freebie on TPT for the Oreos to go on! I had bought a Halloween pack, so we have orange moons. HA!

This is probably my favorite thing about this week. A student that started with me as a fourth grader (now in grade six) did not know letters, numbers, or how to write his name. He has come such a long way since then. That first year we worked on those three things. Last year we began doing more with phonics and more with numbers (adding/subtracting). Well this year, he is reading!!!!! I could not be more proud of this student. He was so happy when he finished reading those five sentences!! The look on his face is something I will never forget. Moments such as this are the reason I became a teacher. I cried this week, but for so many happy reasons! They were all happy tears! One co-workers said something negative about this and it threw me off for a minute, but I was too happy and too proud for anything to ruin my day. The next day, my student proved her statement to be wrong and was reading again! Even as I write this, I am tearing up because of how far this student has come and because it's something I wasn't sure would happen, but it did!!!!!!

For this reading activity, he had to roll each dice and write the word down. He then had to draw a picture to go with the last word. The first only has the word "It." The next has "is." The third has three words: the, my, and a. The final dice has basic words with a picture. When he finishes one row, i point and he reads, then he points and reads. At the end, once all are completed I point and read reads the entire thing. Then he points and reads the entire thing! This was on Thursday. On Friday, he was reading in a basic Reading A-Z book!!!!! Yay!!!!

Friday, September 5, 2014

Linking up with Doodle Bugs Teaching for the first Five for Friday of the school year!!! Here's week two!

This week we began looking at the difference between fiction and non-fiction. I made these two anchor charts with the kids during Reader's Workshop time.

Then I made this chart for us to fill in next week:

I reviewed the rules for buddy reading so that when small groups begin next week the children will know exactly what to do!! To review, the kids paired up and read a Close Reading passage. I purchased this packet from TPT last year from Teaching and Tapas (third grade level - I believe there's also a grade two level!). It's fantastic!!! The kids read together, then worked on the questions individually!

In math, I'm teaching place value. I have started putting together a place value packet for TPT. This week I used one of the pages with my students to test it out! It's an interactive notebook page and it was a hit!!! I put up a sneak peek freebie. You can find it here or by clicking on the picture of it below!

This week as I was meeting with my new principal, I mentioned how I have everything in a labeled (front and spine) binder. Later in the day, I was showing her something for open house and she jokingly asked me if I kept the sheet in a binder. I think we'll get along!! You can find my binder labels here or by clicking on the picture!

Working as a special education teacher brings me complete joy. My students seriously bring tears of joy to my eyes. I generally have my students for two to three years. This picture means so much to me and here's why:

Do you see green?!?! I DO!!!!! It's not very often a self-contained teacher sees green. Unfortunately, my students rarely read on grade level. These two students are in grade six and reading on a grade six level at the beginning of the year!!! WOOHOO!!! They are usually in the yellow of red area. I am so proud of these two students. I cannot believe how far they have come and am already dreading the end of the year when they move onto the junior high school. I have had both of these children for two years, this being their third with me. This goes to show that anything can be accomplished if you believe you can do it. I truly believe in all of my students, which in turn makes them believe more in themselves. We have worked so hard over the past few years and this is the proof. This seriously makes me one of the happiest and proud teachers. I know that along the way I have done something right and have made difference in their lives and them in mine. I'm truly blessed to have these students and wouldn't change my job for anything!!

I hope you all enjoyed you week, whether it was your first or you're a few in! It was a humid one for us, hopefully the humidity passes for week three!

Monday, September 1, 2014

Linking up with the always lovely Farley on the always wonderful Currently linky!!

September Currently:

Listening: We both have today off, yay for 3 day weekends! He's playing a video game while I blog a bit!

Loving: I'm loving that I am relaxing right now and do not have a set plan for the day! I am also loving that I found the perfect shoes for my bridesmaids! Yay!

Thinking: I am thinking of all the groupings I will have to be making this week once beginning of the year testing is complete. So far, my spelling groups are done. I have four spelling groups this year!!!! Whoa! I use Words Their Way for spelling. I give a spelling inventory to each student and group them based on their level. Although I teach grades 5 and 6 this year, my students generally work on a grade 2 level (some higher, some lower).

Wanting: I can't wait for my house to be clean again. Right now there are boxes everywhere!!! My fiance is the chair for the AFSP RI Chapter. He is also in charge of a walk, which is next weekend. I am so proud of all of his hard work and dedication to this cause. He's so selfless. Next weekend all of the boxes will be gone (because they are for the walk)!!! Woooo! Then I can arrange my house back to normal.

Needing: Food. We need to go food shopping but are both pretty content with sitting/laying down right now. Maybe we'll make it later!

3 Trips: Italy, Paris, and The Maldives. I have never been to any of these places but would love to go for extremely different reasons. My family is Italian and I would love to see where my grandparents and great-grandparents came from. Doesn't everyone dream of Paris? I know I do! As for The Maldives, it looks like one of the most relaxing places on the planet! Who doesn't want to relax in paradise?